There is so much to do on a cruise ship, especially a Disney ship! Â We had a blast and I’m convinced all the activities are the reason I didn’t gain any weight – despite eating anything and everything I wanted for a week. Â Our whole family was busy and loved the days at sea as much as the port adventures.
Every evening we would receive “The Navigator” in our cabin with info and listings of the activities for the next day.
Each evening of the cruise, our steward, Michael, would straighten up our cabin and leave us a fun towel animal, chocolates, and a newsletter, The Navigator, with the next day’s Onboard activities. Â The Navigator was very easy to read, with activities highlighted by ages and interests, and then an overall guide by time and location, similar to a TV guide listing.
My daughter and I playing the game show, “Mickey Mania”.
We were all sticking together, so we would look at the activities for the entire family. Â Quickly, we settled into knowing that after dinner, there was a show in the large Walt Disney Theater, and then a fun activity in the Studio Sea lounge. Â Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be on a game show? Â My daughter and I played “Mickey Mania”! Â We didn’t win for trivia, but definitely won in the fun category!
A highlight of the trip was my daughter being interviewed on the red carpet for “The Golden Mickeys”.
The shows each evening in the Walt Disney Theater were entertaining, fun, and more elaborate than I expected. Â One night we were treated to “the Golden Mickeys”, an awards show honoring Disney movies. Â As a huge movie fan, I loved this particular show. Â Every year our family has a red carpet party for the Oscars. Â When my daughter was little, she called it our “Red Rug Party” and that name has stuck. Â On the cruise, there was a red carpet before the Golden Mickeys, and my daughter was thrilled to be interviewed! Â It was one of the highlights of the trip for her. Â The interview appeared on the large screens in the theater and she was excited to know that she was “on TV”. Â A small suggestion for the producers – if it would be possible to delay the broadcast of the interviews for just a few minutes, so the kids could go inside and watch themselves, it would be even more thrilling. Â Other shows in the Walt Disney Theater were musicals, comedy, magic – something for everyone!
Our normally somewhat shy daughter was comfortable enough to sing karaoke – “Let It Go”, of course.
Another highlight of the trip for us was seeing our little girl sing karaoke. She had never done it before, and despite being a little shy, she felt comfortable enough to take the stage twice! Disney brings out the best in children!
Ready for Maleficent in 3D
On Disney cruises you can see first-run movies that are currently playing in theaters at home. During our cruise, we could have seen Million Dollar Arm or Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Â We did see Maleficent in 3d! Â I wish we could have had the time to see all the movies. Jimmy, our cruise director, had us laughing when he said,”Disney cruises show first run Disney movies because, well, we own ’em!”
A “High Five” for Jimmy, the Cruise Director.
Amazing backdrop for a game of ping pong.
There were many supervised activities, seminars, and fun events during the day also. Or if you wanted to just play, there are basketball courts, soccer areas, ping pong tables, and swimming pools. It was incredible to play ping pong with the ocean as a backdrop.
Sliding into the Mickey Pool.
The pools on the ship were heated, so despite cooler temperatures, you could swim. The adults in our group didn’t but my daughter swam several times and loved all the kid-friendly pools. There was one where kids could swim and watch a movie on a giant screen at the same time. Notice what the lifeguard is wearing – that gives you a hint of the air temperature. Â Another pool had a fun slide and three different areas creating a pool in the shape of who else, but Mickey!
One of our favorite things to do at Walt Disney World is to meet the characters. Â We always enjoy character meals or meet-and-greets. Â So when we saw that there would be characters aboard the ship with us, we were excited! Â I was surprised by the accessibility and variety of the characters. Â It seemed like we were running into princesses everywhere.
The onboard activities were so plentiful and fun that my daughter said she loved being on ship as much as being at Walt Disney World, shhhhhh, maybe even more. All of us truly did enjoy everything on ship so much that we might consider a repositioning cruise someday (those are the cruise with many days at sea, as ships move from one area of the world to another).
To learn more:
More posts about our Disney Cruise:
How We Chose Our Alaska Cruise – Things To Consider When Deciding On A Cruise Line and Cruise Ship
Things To Do in Vancouver Before Your Alaska Cruise
Sailing On The Disney Wonder – Day One: Sail Away! #DisneyCruise @DisneyCruise
Sailing On The Disney Wonder – The Staterooms #DisneyCruiseÂ
Sailing On The Disney Wonder – Things To Do On The Ship #DisneyCruise
That looks so fun! I’d love to visit it if I ever have a chance.
Looks like so much faun; i have never been on a cruise, makes me want to go on one :)
What wonderful pics and memories you have created. I want to one day go on a cruise, badly!
Absolutely amazing! As a child it must be an incredible and stunning experience…even as an adult I’ll for sure have a great time!
Love all the different characters. Looks like so much fun!
It looks like there are lots of fun activities to do on the cruise.
My daughter would love meeting the characters and the shows look like a lot of fun.
Looks like tons of fun! I want to go!
would it be weird that I’d want to go on this with just me and my fiance? he would think so, but I wouldn’t!!
I am amazed at the attention to detail (the guide, candy etc), the amazing fun shows with so much interaction, and the pool with a giant TV. Of course Disney films must be shown, lol.
it sounds like there is a lot of live entertainment on the boat too. GREAT for all ages
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It sounds like there are a lot of great activities to keep you busy on a Disney cruise!
SO FUN!!! A Disney Cruise is on the tippy-top of my little guys & I’s “Someday List”!!! :D
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It looks like a great cruise.
This looks like a great way to spend time with your family, and it looks fun even for adults. I know I would have a lot of fun!
It looks like y’all had a great time. I would love to go on a cruise one day.
I haven’t been on such a cruise before. Would love to go on one someday.
What fun! Always wanted to go on a Disney cruise.
Amazing experience! My nephews would go crazy about meeting allthose characters and having all those activities! Super fun!
That looks like so much fun , my kids are older and I think it would still be fun lol the picture of you with the 3D glasses is great
There is so much to do on a Disney Cruise and the food is amazing. My Disney Cruise was spent with adults in the adult section of the cruise and I literally only saw children at dinner. Adults had a pool, spa, beach area dedicated to only adults. It was truly amazing and I’m going on another one in October; can’t wait!!
It’s too fun,it’s a destination who kids adore to go with parents in this cruise.A nice place,a dream destination!
I’ve been on a cruise but not a Disney Cruise and this looks like so much more fun! I want to go!!!! Love the pics, BTW.
I never thought I would wish to go on a cruise, but this seems really fun:) I love how they incorporate Disney characters into everything!
Cute pics!
Wow! It looks like y’all had TONS of fun! :D I love your daughter got to pose with all those Disney characters. SO COOL! :D
The characters would be the most exciting part for my grandsons! They would love to meet all of those!
Looks like absolute fun! love the pics!
wow looks like your days were filled with lots of fun
Looks like so much fun! My boys would have loved the waterslide and meeting all the characters!
I think it’s great that Disney shares their still-in-theaters movies on their ships. That’s an activity my kids would love, since I usually make them wait for the DVD to come out.
wow,what a great opportunity!!!
Really enjoying your cruiselog – down the road you’ll be soooo happy you and family have this, so much happens so fast that later on some things become overwritten in memory. Highly recommend every traveler/vacationer take 5 minutes at the end of each day to “journalize” and label/date every picture – we think we’ll remember but… alas! not always the case ☺
That looks like so much fun! I wanna go! And I think a repositioning cruise would be a lot of fun. What a way to travel.
OMG, it looks like sooooooooooo much fun and so much to do….never a dull moment. Good for you! A trip your family will never forget.
So I’m pretty sure that my family and I need to go on a cruise now.
My daughter is obsessed with Toy Story-she would love to see a musical.
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Looks like an awesome trip! I’m going to have to check it out for my family.
Looks like a great family trip!
It seems like they really go above and beyond to make it nice for the kids. It sure looked like a lot of fun.
This will be such a memorable trip for your daughter!
You can tell by your smiles how much fun you were having!
What great pictures! It looks like you had tons of fun.
That sounds like so much fun. I love Disney, and the shows and activities sound great.
Sliding into the Mickey Pool! Kids will love this one!
Sounds like a fun trip.
Sounds fun! I’ve never been there before but it looks really cute :)
When the kids get old enough to remember, we are so going on this cruise! i have always wanted to go on a Disney cruise because they have something for the whole family and they can watch your kids too if you want to go do adult stuff! cool! I love everything to do with Disney.
Love the place, a fun place to visit
We went on a Disney cruise last year and I so wish we could do it again. We’re going to have to wait now though until our youngest can do the kids club. The Golden Mickeys sounds fun. We didn’t have that when we sailed on the Disney Magic.
I love your photos with all the Disney characters.
I have been to disney world but never been on a disney cruise. It looks exciting.
Looks like there a couple of shows to take in. Love the pool
This looks like so much fun! My sons have been asking about going to DiSney land but I think a cruise would be more fun!!
I was just saying to myself how much I want to go on a Disney Cruise. I actually worked on a cruise ship many, many, many years ago. There is nothing like being out on the open sea.
Love the variety of characters they had on board – not just the traditional ones – so cute
So much fun for the kids on the cruise. Disney sure thinks of everything.
So beautiful
Looks like an amazing time! Characters galore! :) Disney really knows how to do things right.
My daughters would also be delighted to meet the Disney princesses. :) Great photos!
Sounds like a blast! We live close to Disney World, and go often – but have never been on a Disney cruise!
What a wonderful fun experience!
That sound wonderful, wish i can go too.
looks like a lot of fun…wish i was there
Looks like a wonderful trip for the family. Looks like lots of fun things to do on the ship too.
I like the evening towel animal and the magazine so you could plan the next day’s adventures.
Wow! Your trip looks like it was wonderful :)
That looks like so much fun, I hope we can go one day. :)
Oh that looks so fun! I would love to take Carter someday! I love all the activities they have for you to do! The meet and greets would be so fun!
It looks like so much fun! This is my dream vacation to take with dd before she is too old to enjoy it!
I had heard the disney hotels did the towels in cute shapes daily but didn’t know they did it on the cruise ships too. Man, I wish I could afford a cruise sometime soon.
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It looks like they provided many different activities to enjoy and I like that they provided you with a “navigator” each day so you could plan your activities. I think the character would be the highlight for most children
my daughter loves to go to disney too!
Ohh… I love all of the characters. You folks look like you are having so much fun. Love the photos.
What a fabulous opportunity for you both!
I loved see ing all the pictures, a real insider’s look at a Disney cruise.
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I love all of the characters! It is so awesome that they show off all of the characters that they did. The backdrops are especially beautiful. It looks like your daughter truly had an amazing time!
Sitting here in the desert melting into a puddle of sweat the idea of an Alaskan Cruise sounds more and more appealing… and it does sound like you all had a GREAT time.
The activities available seem amazing. The more I read about your trip, the more I want to start planning my own so my family can enjoy one. I think my entire family would love it with all the activities, food, and locations to visit during the cruise.
Looks like a fun aspect for the kids to be able to have, visiting with all the characters while on the ship. The shows look fun too!
I love that they have so many activities, especially for children. I think meeting the characters would have been my favorite. Especially the Princesses.
How exciting. this looks like it would have been tons of fun. Perfect for families!
Looks like the experience of a lifetime for any child! I’d love to treat my granddaughter to a Disney cruise.
I love that they offer such a variety of activities! great for kids and adults to keep everyone busy :)
This looks like it would be incredibly fun for younger kids and their family. It’s amazing what the cruise ships have onboard for people to have fun and play with.
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So much fun!! I can’t wait to go on another cruise!
I love how much there is for the kids to do.
That looks like such fun…for children AND adults!
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Oh this looks like so much fun! A disney cruise sounds amazing! I wish I could actually go on boats without getting sick hah But looks like you had a great time!!
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Your daughter was so brave to sing karaoke in front of everyone! I bet she will never forget that trip!
The more I read your reviews the more convinced I become that my husband and I need to start saving up to go on one with our kids! This just looks amazing, I love that you can still swim despite the air temp.
Love they have a fun opportunity to dress up!
Looks nice cruise
A Greeting
I love that there are so many activities for the kids. And the pool looks like such fun!
I’ve never been on a Disney cruise so this was very informative. My kids would love it.
The shows look like so much fun. My kids would love this!
I love the little details like the folded towels.
I always wanted to go on a ship but afraid of falling overboard.LOL
It looks like there’s a lot of fun things to do. I love the towels and think it would be fun to be able to do that.
glad to see they have so many different characters on board
Disney sure does deliver when it comes to magical memories.
I would have been in 7th heaven on one of these cruises when I was a kid! Ha, who am I joking…I think I’d be in 7th heaven even now as an adult. ;) It looks like your family had tons of fun!
The pool looks awesome. I always wondered what it would be like to swim while you are riding on water.
Awesome! Looks like it was a blast!
Lovely place and pics I have never visited Disney maybe someday.
I admit that after I read your review, I think I should start to save money for the Disney cruise now! It looks so much fun and amazing!!
My nieces are huge Disney fans & would love this cruise!